On the McDonald's Corporation's Web site, both Taiwan and Hong Kong are identified as a country, while China is missing. Many other corporations -- including Audi, Mercedes-Benz, GM and Siemens -- list Taiwan as a country. This is just a simple situation that tallies with business operations. But Chinese media believe that Taiwan cannot be taken as a "country," since this word refers to an independent nation with its own sovereignty.
With Chinese nationalism, it's hard to know whether to laugh or despair. For example, consumers worldwide are familiar with products labeled "Made in Taiwan" (MIT). MIT products represent good quality and cheap prices, especially IT products. However, if labeled "Made in China," the quality they represent may be much lower.
It's a given that Taiwan, Hong Kong and China are all official members of the WTO. In the situation in today's global market, China's actions against Taiwan's sovereignty go against most people's understanding, because they are unnecessary and appalling.
Not only has China's rigid and inflexible policy oppressed Taiwan, but it has also squeezed Hong Kong. After its handover in 1997, the territory's political independence it used to enjoy under the British disappeared, and its control over its own economic and trade affairs shrank. This has destroyed the Hong Kong people's confidence in Beijing's policy of "one country, two systems."
No wonder, despite numerous disagreements, the ruling and opposition camps in Taiwan are united in their rejection of "one country, two systems." As far as politics is concerned, the world cannot differentiate between the Republic of China (ROC) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). When it comes to China and Taiwan, it is acknowledged that these are countries ruled by two different governments. On Wednesday, 47 Democratic Party members of the Japanese Diet convened a conference to voice support for Taiwan's democratization and liberalization. They agreed to facilitate a visit to Japan by former president Lee Teng-hui (
President Chen Shui-bian (
If the two sides of the Taiwan Strait wish to maintain peace and stability, they should delineate the boundaries of the battlefield but not engage in total war. Clearly separating politics and economics and allowing mutual exchanges in the private sector to remain untrammeled by the issue of sovereignty is probably the most surefire model. If everything gets tied up in a Web of nationalism, then neither side of the strait will be able to act.
There is much evidence that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is sending soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — and is learning lessons for a future war against Taiwan. Until now, the CCP has claimed that they have not sent PLA personnel to support Russian aggression. On 18 April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelinskiy announced that the CCP is supplying war supplies such as gunpowder, artillery, and weapons subcomponents to Russia. When Zelinskiy announced on 9 April that the Ukrainian Army had captured two Chinese nationals fighting with Russians on the front line with details
On a quiet lane in Taipei’s central Daan District (大安), an otherwise unremarkable high-rise is marked by a police guard and a tawdry A4 printout from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating an “embassy area.” Keen observers would see the emblem of the Holy See, one of Taiwan’s 12 so-called “diplomatic allies.” Unlike Taipei’s other embassies and quasi-consulates, no national flag flies there, nor is there a plaque indicating what country’s embassy this is. Visitors hoping to sign a condolence book for the late Pope Francis would instead have to visit the Italian Trade Office, adjacent to Taipei 101. The death of
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), joined by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), held a protest on Saturday on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei. They were essentially standing for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which is anxious about the mass recall campaign against KMT legislators. President William Lai (賴清德) said that if the opposition parties truly wanted to fight dictatorship, they should do so in Tiananmen Square — and at the very least, refrain from groveling to Chinese officials during their visits to China, alluding to meetings between KMT members and Chinese authorities. Now that China has been defined as a foreign hostile force,
RSS